Team Building
by fbrobey
Summary: Max decides that arguments in the office are going too far, so in order to get closer to his employees he takes them on a team building weekend.. however things don't go quite how they expected them to go.
1. Chapter 1

Max sat alone in his office as he often did in the afternoon. It was one thing being the boss with a spacious room and a fleet of workers obeying his sometimes, ridiculous demands, but Max got lonely. He felt isolated from them in his fancy office with its comfortable brown leather armchairs and sofas, overly sufficient mahogany desk and large, high backed, brown suede chair, with the idyllic view of the street below.

There was no point having millions of dollars when he had no one to enjoy it with. Max huffed. He folded his arms and pouted. He stood up and kicked one of his chairs, the exertion of his shiny shoe being absorbed by the thick, spongy leather, and still he felt no better. In a mad moment he pictured himself tumbling out of the 18-story window, but shook this off.

"That would just be stupid… you'd stain your suit." Reasoned Max, tugging at his brown curls distractedly.

Sighing Max resigned himself to his loneliness curling on one of his sofas, the hand dangling over the side picking at the rug. Max needed a friend. He rolled onto his back, gazing at the ceiling. Sighing he tapped absentmindedly on his stomach. _Tap, tap, tap_ Max began to smile as a little ditty unravelled he began tapping his feet and humming a made up tune.

Snorting with laughter Max sat up, gazing over to his desk. The pot of pens looked suddenly more inviting now he didn't have the urge to stab his furniture with them. Sitting elegantly behind his desk he pulled a blank page of white towards him and began to scribble, tongue between his teeth in thought, drawing out some fashion phenomenon and daydreaming about anything but the small fortune he could add to his bank account when sales came through top as always for his design.

As he the creation took shape before his eyes Max began to smile. The outline of the woman was faceless but he knew who she was. The slender figure complimented his dress perfectly. There was a soft knock on the glass frosted door, and Max glanced up subconsciously returning his thick-lens glasses to the bridge of his nose with a finger.

Seeing the outline of the figure he'd been drawing silhouetted against the glass made his heart skip. With a small yelp he stuffed the design into the drawer.

"Come on in." He called, smiling widely as she poked her head through the door. Her long chocolate hair flowed messily down her shoulders, her hazel eyes looked tired. She was flustered. Max loved it when she looked like that.

"Hello Amanda" He greeted with his friendly beam as she entered the room, neatly closing the door behind her and marching smartly to his desk, heels clicking rhythmically.

"Max… I need to talk to you." Frowned Amanda. Max chuckled and her annoyance faded a little bit, although she remained poker faced.

"Don't laugh at me, this is serious" She grimaced. "True's little friend is playing some dreadful loud music and I can't concentrate Max."

Max scratched his chin thoughtfully as Amanda continued to scowl. He peered into her steel blue eyes and was surprised to see a glimmer of sensitivity there.

"_Perhaps I'm not the only one around here who's lonely" _Max considered as Amanda tore her gaze from his.

"Work in here." He answered finally.

"I tell you Max I can't work next to…w-what?" Amanda looked taken aback as her boss stood up, towering over her despite her tall shoes.

"I said do your work in here, I could use the company." Max smiled as she gaped. Wordlessly she left the office to collect her portfolio of designs, unaware of her boss watching her retreating back with a soft gaze.

*****

True returned from her trip to the material room to find chaos in her room. Ryan was leaping up and down on the sofa air-guitaring with Jimmy, throwing tootie fruits to each other and generally making a nosy mess.

"RYAN?" True exclaimed, turning off the music at once. "Jimmy this isn't a concert, it's my room and Amanda is going to be livid. I'm surprised she isn't in here telling you off." True sighed exasperated.

Ryan and Jimmy flopped onto the sofa with a final leap and a loud thump.

"She wouldn't be would she… because she's already done that" True groaned dumping the material in the corner by her design.

"She's apparently going to Uncle Max about it" Shrugged Jimmy, shoving a few more tootie fruits in his mouth with a look of distaste.

True groaned. This was the last thing she needed she and Amanda had been at loggerheads all week over Max's big design project for the prom season. They had been arguing constantly and this was the last thing she needed.

"When did she go to Mr Madi… Amanda!" Squealed True spotting the tall vice president emerging from her office with an armful of designs and a smug look on her face.

"Ah True, enjoy your little party you won't be bothering me any more today." Smirked Amanda, happiness dancing in her eyes.

True was nervous, when Amanda was happy, it meant something unfortunate usually happened to her, like the time she happily let her look after the model Dakota North. True had nearly lost her job when the model disappeared. Luckily things had worked out alright and True survived another day at Mad Style.

Amanda pushed her way past True to the elevator, heart pounding with excitement. Despite the office gossip, Amanda had always managed to keep her affection for a boss a secret. She flushed a little checking her hair in the mirror.

"Ugh… such a mess" Sighed Amanda, while assured she was in the company of just herself. As the elevator bell rang signalling she had reached the 18th floor, she hurriedly gathered up her belongings and tottered to Max's office once more.


	2. Chapter 2

Scuttling into the room, Amanda felt herself soften as Max bestowed her with another cherishing smile. He was currently sat behind his desk but had looked up at the appearance of the soft clicking of Amanda's heels on the shiny, pale green flooring paving the path along the 18th floor corridor.

Amanda was elegantly dressed as always in a high-waisted black pencil skirt, which flaunted her slim, stocking-covered legs. Her cream coloured, frilly blouse was tucked in, it's plain, smart colour a sharp comparison to the bold and vivid colours she often used in her designs, much to Max's approval.

"Come on in Amanda" Max smiled as he stood, indicating for her to take his chair and use his desk. Amanda made her way towards him. She knew that the office would have a field day if they found out she was going to be spending the afternoon alone with her boss, given there was already speculation as to just why Amanda "sucked up" to him so much.

The truth was, Amanda admired Max. His flair for clothing designs had inspired her own love of clothes. Her position at Mad Style had been her dream job. Perhaps she devoted too much time to it. Amanda had always been a strong career-orientated woman she knew what her goals were and how to achieve them. As a result she was often competitive, and considered mean.

Amanda's hard shell was just a form of self-protection, her often moody and sarcastic demeanour a cover up for a softer side, in particular a soft spot for Max Madigan, who was currently surveying her through his thick rimmed, heavy-lensed tinted spectacles. Dropping gently into her chair, she slid her portfolio onto the chocolate coloured bureau, very aware of Max, stood behind her, fingers gripping the back of the seat.

"Now, now Max, no peeking" Amanda half giggled, scolding him with a false air of confidence. She was sure he could hear her heart pounding whenever he came too close, or complimented her. Max was the only one who really made her feel at home in the office, that and her love of the job.

"I was hoping you'd forget I was here, so I'd get to take a look" Max sulked childishly, moving reluctantly around the desk, much to both his and Amanda's well-hidden disappointment. Max contented himself with perching on the edge of the desk, tugging at the mass of fluffy brown curls in quiet contemplation, legs swinging and hitting the desk with a distracting _thud_.

Amanda gazed up from her design, one of the many suits for Mad Style's _Prom Season_ range. She opened her mouth to ask him to stop kicking her workspace, but spotted his normally perfect posture, hunched and submissive, as though a heavy weight was physically crushing him.

"Max…" Amanda began tentatively, immediately wishing she hadn't spoke, as it hit her she had no clue what she was going to say. All she knew was that it unnerved her slightly to see her usually chirpy and excitable boss so dejected and helpless looking. Softly she got up from Max's comfortable chair making her way towards him as he looked up.

She didn't know why her feet were carrying her, what purpose she had for moving closer to her boss. Yet she often felt closer to Max than just the boundaries of colleagues. Amanda frequently got the impression from him that he considered her a friend, over the many years of her working at Mad Style he'd often confided in her, telling her everything from his rivalry with Simon Crostini, to the loss of his fiancée Sophie Gérard.

Max stopped pulling gently on his hair and lifted his head to gaze at his Vice President. His eccentricity often had him deemed stupid by a lot of his opponents. Max was a lot of things, forgetful, absent-minded and occasionally flamboyantly compulsive. However, he was far from brainless. His brown eyes glittered with an air of intellect, which Amanda was struck by as she chanced a proper glance at Max.

Amanda would often avoid eye contact with her boss, not because of lack of confidence, or because she didn't want to. She knew he had a keen mind and could quietly suss out most things. Amanda knew that if Max had the chance to gaze in her eyes for too long he would stumble across her desire for what she was looking at.

"Max what's wrong?" She continued bravely, and somewhat foolishly. She was well aware that if Max was in one of his rages, she risked being fired on the spot. As it transpired she wasn't going to lose her job. Max peered at her, his mind ticking behind his glasses.

"I need to think." Max muttered more to himself than to Amanda.

Max stood up from his desk examining every inch of its structure. Much to a bemused Amanda's bewilderment, she mentally kicked herself for letting her eyes drift over her bosses bent over form strictly longer then necessary, and felt her cheeks grow pinker as he straightened up. Thankfully he was absorbed in his tangent.

"Amanda… how do these desks stay together?" He questioned her.

Temporarily nonplussed Amanda found herself unable to answer.

"Components Amanda… each of these parts works together to keep the desk sturdy." Max said, waving his arms around like a windmill in a hurricane.

"These don't work then the whole desk falls apart." Max concluded eyes wide as though he'd just explained something vital to her. He smiled not seeming to see her flummoxed face at all.

"Amanda." He suddenly brightened, face breaking into a grin. "Would you like to accompany me to Happy Berry Yum Yum? My treat." Amanda stared, flabbergasted at the sudden change of mood. Max leapt from the desk, which he had perched back on, pressing softly on the small of Amanda's back, steering her out of the office.

*****

Amanda was immensely grateful that no one from work ever went to Happy Berry Yum Yum. She slurped still a little confused at her vibrant pink, strawberry flavoured, frozen yoghurt, brow furrowed in thought every so often gazing at Max who was suckling on snowy, white vanilla deep in thought.

A comfortable silence fell between the two executives broken only by an odd gulp of ice-cold yoghurt, a murmur of pleasure and finally a squeak of pain and clatter of metal on metal.

"Max?" Amanda uttered looking concerned as his face twisted, and eyes popped. He twitched his nose in discomfort as he yelped, breathless.

"Brain freeze…" Amanda couldn't help but chuckle, as his face returned to normal, fingers massaging his temples.

The man behind the counter rolled his eyes knowingly mouthing to Amanda.

"He always gets brain freeze" Amanda found herself smiling in spite of her desire to hide it with a scowl. As Max's eyes came back into focus, he found a wide grin playing on his lips, the bright sparkle of an epiphany alight and dancing in his chocolate eyes.

"I need to eat more frozen foods…" Stated Max. "Amanda, I want an urgent meeting called."


End file.
